REPORT: Knicks’ OG Anunoby have made a $9.5 contact deals with other franchises‘
Since the Knicks acquired OG Anunoby midseason, fans have assumed that he would be wearing a Knicks jersey come next season, and rightfully so.
Leon Rose & Co. traded away RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley for the former Raptor and there is a strong belief that New York wouldn’t have done so if the front office didn’t think there was a good chance of luring the 3-and-D wing-back this summer.
Making his return seem even more likely is the fact that Anunoby’s agent is Sam Rose, who is the son of the Knicks’ president.
gave Knicks fans a bit of a reality check by reporting that there is no guarantee that Anunoby will re-sign with the Knicks come July and that he is expected to consider offers from other teams by declining the player option in his contract and entering unrestricted free agency.
“While league personnel are of the mind Siakam will certainly be re-signing with Indiana, there was word circling among team officials at last week’s NBA Draft Combine that Anunoby’s situation with the Knicks is not as cut and dried,” Fischer reported. “Perhaps those signals to rival teams will only help Anunoby elicit a larger dollar figure from the Knicks.
“But various teams left Chicago with the belief that Anunoby could reach unrestricted free agency and consider deals from other franchises in addition to New York, sources said.”
Now, there are a few things to consider and remember here.
First, we always knew that OG would opt out of his player option and become an unrestricted free agent. Anunoby has the right to—and I would even say should—listen to all offers. His run with the Knicks showed promise, and at the end of the day, he needs to look at what kind of offers are out there on the table and consider the money and opportunities laid out in front of him.
Second, it’s also important to remember just who Fischer heard this from. Nothing is coming out of Anunoby or his camp, and nothing said by his agent or CAA. That doesn’t mean that Fischer’s information is not true, but it also means that it could just be a ploy to force the Knicks’ hand in paying as much as they can to assure that Anunoby does indeed return. Think about it this way. If you were a rival team—say a team like the Sixers, who are also reportedly interested in signing Anunoby—wouldn’t you also leak something similar to put more pressure on the Knicks?
Third, Anunoby’s agent being Rose’s son cannot be overstated. It’s not just a friend, a former teammate, or someone who is further removed from Rose. It’s as close to a foot inside the door and an ear inside the room as a GM or president could have. Again, this doesn’t automatically mean that Anunoby is returning. But don’t you think that the Knicks would have been more hesitant in giving up two young pieces for a half-season rental if Rose knew, or at least heard from his son, that Anunoby wasn’t at least leaning towards staying?
According to the NBA rules, the Free Agency Moratorium is “a negotiation period from July 1-6 in which teams may not sign most free agents or make trades.” Teams can start negotiating deals at 6 p.m. ET on June 30, but players cannot officially sign them until 12:01 p.m. ET on July 6.
In OG Anunoby’s case, his player-option decision must be finalized by June 24, according to HoopsRumors, and if picked it’d earn Anunoby’s $19.9 million next season.
